Day 52 - Tue 19 Jul 2016
Anchored - John Island, ON (North Channel)

[note: SPOT satellite tracker did not register on the website after 2 attempts; not sure if it is a web issue or they never got the signal]

[photo: just some of the very pretty scenery surrounding us in Cleary Cove]

It dawned a beautifully sunny day and we took our time because the fuel dock didn't open until 0730. We left the slip with a still-challenging cross wind blowing us towards the police boat just 3 feet on our port beam, but we did fine. I didn't need fuel before crossing back to US waters and ports where the taxes were less, but with the favorable exchange rate for us right now, it was 'a wash' monetarily, so we decided to leave with full fuel and an empty holding (waste) tank.

Although we were a bit busy docking to get fuel, Diane pointed out a deer running on the grass just a short distance from where we were. That was our first deer sighting on this trip. Paying for our purchases, I gave the Harbour Master all our Canadian currency we had left and paid the rest on a credit card.

Speaking of adjustments to being in Canada, I believe last year's tactic of purchasing an inexpensive unlocked smartphone and then signing up for a pre-paid plan to get phone service (but mostly Internet) worked well for us at that time. It did not this time, however, because it so happened that we will have been in Canada for only about 32 days. I had anticipated a bit more than that and so our two months' worth of service will be almost 50% wasted. I will see if perhaps someone at Drummond coming into Canada might want to use the rest up and then ship the phone back to us.

The crossing to the NW from Gore Bay to the western end of John Island went well, although the winds was a bit stronger than forecast and the waves from yesterday's big blow had not quite calmed down yet. I had been told that it was very doable to enter the harbor between John and Dewdney Islands from the E as long as you stayed away from the marked shoals and rocks. It was, indeed, very easy.

Turning into Cleary Cove, on Dewdney Island, was more challenging because it was not sounded, meaning you had to rely on your eyes to spot shoals and rocks and the depth sounder to tell you how deep it all was. Again, we had no problem by going very slowly to be safe. We anchored in 6 feet of water and the anchor set well. This could be a place where boaters use an anchor and tie the sterns to shore, packing more into the available space. We are swinging to one anchor and taking up this one section of the cove, but there is still room for others.

For an early lunch, we found ourselves nibbling on small quantities of three different appetizers that were left over from the last three cruiser parties. We polished off two of them and have a bit less clutter in the fridge now. Following lunch, I got the dinghy down and we tooled around a bit. Once we got out of our little cove, the W wind was strong enough to make a chop in the large anchorage.

We stopped at one place and climbed the rock hill to find more ripe blueberries. We got perhaps a half cup before we said enough of that. Mixed with leftovers from the other day, it is enough for another meal of something. We saw one older couple in a small fishing skiff and that was it for the entire day. We found that rather strange as this is supposed to be a popular spot.

With just a few days left in Canadian waters, I don't think it is too early to state that while have loved both the Georgian Bay and the North Channel, we found the Georgian Bay to be prettier overall. Both areas had some gorgeous, clear water, and both had some places with murky water. The North Channel definitely seemed colder, on average. We can see why people love to cruise up here. Even though parts of the river system in the US will, hopefully, be wonderful, I suspect there will be a number of days running down muddy rivers that we will long for this place.

We played a lot of Mah Jongg today with my lucky streak holding out. Supper was the beef stew from the crockpot a few days ago. We'll polish that off tomorrow night. The rules for importing food back into the US are not at all clear and it is easier if you just don't have that much to declare. I will make another crockpot lasagna the day we run to Drummond to clear into the US, since that could be an 8-hour day of travel.

The wind died a bit and with the sun blazing it was a delightful late afternoon and evening her in Cleary Cove, all by ourselves. Tomorrow, we will make a very short run to Long Point Cove, a spot recommended by our new Canadian friends on Hog's Breath.